Posts Tagged Rocksteady Studios

Many remember him for his awkward participation in the movie Batman & Robin (1997), played by none other than the Governator himself in all his fuzzy slippers glory. This time, it seems like Mr. Freeze is really here as a great menace to The Bat. So be sure to check out this new Arkham City Reveal Trailer.

It really seems that Dr. Victor Fries is stepping up his game in order to save his beloved wife. Do you think he’ll be the cold blooded killer to put down the great Batman, or should he change his name to Mr. Breeze? We’ll all find out when the game comes out 10/18/2011 (that’s October 18th in case you’re not American).

We’ve all seen the concept art, but not much else was known about The Penguin’s part in the sequel to the much acclaimed Batman: Arkham Asylum. In this exclusive GameSpot trailer we can see Batman fighting a whole lot of baddies as usual. Some takedowns and combos seemed new to me as well.

Staring the trailer we can see Penguin without his usual top hat and some of “the best” henchmen money can buy (his words, not mine). Also new is the massive undead super villain Solomon Grundy, but I have no idea how this powerful enemy (known to be as strong as Superman on occasion) could’ve been imprisoned by a short fat guy with a umbrella collection and seemingly average chains.

We can all find out more about what’s their part in all this when Batman: Arkham City hits the stores on October 18th.

A new Batman Arkham City Teaser appeared on MSN today. I believe it is a lead in to the VGAs, where they plan on showing new footage. Click on full screen or double click on it to watch it bigger on YouTube:

[tab:Story]Rocksteady, developers of last year’s highly rated game Batman: Arkham Asylum, have been bought out by Warner Brothers Interactive Entertainment (WBIE), with Warner taking a majority stake in their shares. According to Studio Director Jamie Walker:

We are proud to strengthen our association with WBIE, a world class publisher that we have enjoyed working with since we began developing Batman: Arkham Asylum.

Game Director Sefton Hill has also stated:

The Rocksteady team is very much looking forward to creating more great games based on widely recognized Warner Bros. brands like Batman.

Given the quality of the last title, this could be a great move. What other Warner Brother brands could we see taking advantage of the acquisition? Being a child of the ’90s, the only brands that come to my mind are Animaniacs, Pinky and the Brain, and Freakzoid (I’m kidding :P).

In a related story, they have also acquired the rights to Mortal Kombat from Midway as well. Will we see a rebirth of the franchise or what? It might be OK if they go back to the franchise’s 2D plane roots. If anything, these acquisitions shows confidence in a somewhat bad economy, even if it doesn’t make a huge difference.

Anyway, be sure to read the press release in the tab for more info.
[tab:Press Release]WARNER BROS. HOME ENTERTAINMENT GROUP ACQUIRES MAJORITY STAKE IN ROCKSTEADY STUDIOS

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group announced today the acquisition of a majority stake in Rocksteady Studios, a privately held developer of interactive entertainment targeted at teens and adults, continuing Warner Bros.’ pattern as one of the industry’s fastest growing games publishers.

“Rocksteady demonstrated its professionalism and extraordinary development abilities with Batman: Arkham Asylum,” said Kevin Tsujihara, president, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group. “This arrangement is a great strategic fit and we are very pleased to solidify our relationship with this talented development team.”

Founded in 2004 in London, England, Rocksteady specializes in developing action-adventure video games, including Batman: Arkham Asylum, one of the most critically acclaimed games of 2009. The title has enjoyed robust sales, shipping over three million units worldwide, and has garnered numerous industry awards.

“We are proud to strengthen our association with WBIE, a world class publisher that we have enjoyed working with since we began developing Batman: Arkham Asylum,” said Jamie Walker, studio director, Rocksteady Studios. Sefton Hill, games director, added, “The Rocksteady team is very much looking forward to creating more great games based on widely recognized Warner Bros. brands like Batman.”

Warner Bros. continues to grow its games business through key acquisitions, building internal development capabilities, leveraging its global video distribution infrastructure, and focusing on developing major games franchises such as Batman, Mortal Kombat, The Lord of the Rings and LEGO.

“With the successful release of Batman: Arkham Asylum, a franchise that is a key focus for Warner Bros., Rocksteady has proven that they have the expertise to create hit games with mass appeal,” said Martin Tremblay, president, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. “We are currently working with Rocksteady on the sequel to Batman: Arkham Asylum and look forward to bringing the continuation of the franchise to fans worldwide.”

“We are delighted to be deepening our relationship with London-based Rocksteady Studios, one of the UK’s most respected games developers and 2009 recipient of the VGA’s coveted ‘studio of the year’ award,” said Josh Berger, president and managing director, Warner Bros. UK. “Rocksteady clearly has the talent, expertise and technology to make great games and we are fortunate to continue working closely with them as we further expand our games portfolio.”

In 2007, Warner Bros. acquired TT Games, developer of the hit LEGO-based game franchises, including LEGO Star Wars, LEGO Indiana Jones and LEGO Batman, which have wide appeal with players of all ages. In early 2009, Warner Bros. acquired Snowblind Studios to develop its The Lord of the Rings games franchise, with the first title expected to be released in 2011. Most recently, Warner Bros. purchased the primary assets of Midway Games. Midway published the Mortal Kombat franchise, which has sold over 26 million units worldwide, and owned a robust IP catalog and broadly applicable game engine technology. As part of the transaction, Warner Bros. acquired two talented development studios to focus on the Mortal Kombat franchise as well as other key properties.[tab:END]

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